No, "Family Guy" Probably Didn't Trick Us All With That Major Character Death

If you were hoping that (SPOILER ALERT) Brian Griffin's tragic death on this past Sunday's episode of Family Guy could be a prank, bad news: It probably isn't. According to Deadline, the mysterious site that seems to suggest Brian could still be alive on the series—briansannouncement.com—is a hoax, and is in no way affiliated with Family Guy or 20th Century Fox.

The site, which was originally reported by Deadline, doesn't have much: Apart from the title, "A Special Announcement from Brian," there's a countdown clock signifying that there's just under 10 days before a "special reveal" is made. Since we now have comment from 20th Century Fox confirming the site is a hoax, though—"The producers have confirmed that the ‘special announcement from Brian’ website is a hoax and was not created by anyone connected to the show, studio or network," the studio said—it's more than likely whatever "announcement" that's made will be in the form of a Rick Roll, or something. So 2007, guys...

The character of Brian Griffin, who was on Family Guy since it began in 1999, was killed off in this past Sunday's episode after being run over by a car outside the Griffin family home. The family now has a new dog named Vinny, who's voiced by The Sopranos alum Tony Sirico—he's signed for six episodes, but his contract has the option of upgrading him to a regular cast member.

If you missed it, you can check out the clip of Brian Griffin's last moments below.